Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor
© 2024, Dr. Tamilio
I want you to think about the various relationships you have in your life. If you’re married, think of your spouse. If you have children, think about them. If you work, you probably have a boss and coworkers. Maybe you have clients. You also have friends, neighbors, and others with whom you have a variety of relationships. Now think about the obligations (for lack of a better word) that you have to different people in different relationships. For example, you have a different “obligation” to your spouse than you do to your coworkers. You have a different responsibility to your children than you do to your neighbors. This is incredibly obvious, I know, but how often do we stop and think about such things? Not too often, I’d guess.
Well, being a Christian, a follower of Jesus, is another type of relationship. However, unlike other relationships that you have, you share this one with others. You are not a solitary believer: you exist with others in a covenantal fellowship. Yes, you may read Scripture and pray to God on your own (and I hope you do), but you also do it with others, as you are right now. The Gospel lesson for today is about people being called to follow Jesus: Philip and Nathanael. We’re starting at John 1:43. The eight verses that come just before this reading tell of Jesus calling Andrew and Simon Peter. So, at this point, we have four disciples.
Notice something though. In verses 35-42, Jesus calls Andrew. Andrew then goes and tells Peter, “We have found the Messiah.” In the passage we read, Jesus calls Philip who goes and tells Nathanael, “We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” I’ll give you three guesses as to where I’m going with this… Jesus may have called you to follow him, but you, likewise, are to call others. These seventeen verses show us, as Mark Dever teaches, that disciples make other disciples.[1] Greg Odgen writes, “if I identify myself as a disciple, then I am making a statement about the quality of my followership. Being a Christian is a statement about what Christ has done for me; being a disciple is a statement about what I am doing for Christ.”[2]
And so, we are called to make disciples. That is Jesus’ great command post-resurrection, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19a). This is not just a Sunday thing. This is not a part-time job. Dever writes, “Discipling involves transmitting the knowledge of God and his Word through every moment of life.”[3]
I have quoted Saint Francis many times when he said, “Preach the gospel at all times, and if necessary, use words.” The idea being that your actions should sufficiently proclaim your faith. But the world is full of good deed-doers who are not Christian. How do I know whether or not an altruistic person is a Christian rather than a devout Jew, Hindu, Muslim, or even an atheist? I am coming to understand that our deeds, while important, aren’t enough. We must use our words as well.
No, this does not mean that you should go door-to-door trying to evangelize the unchurched. That would probably turn more people off than it would entice them to accept Jesus. No, that is not what I am asking you to do.
Keep your eyes and ears open. The world is filled with people who are dejected, and who have lost hope in the future. Some of them have given up altogether. Others latch onto quick, easy, popular fixes: drugs, alcohol, promiscuous sex, social media, the latest fad, celebrities with plastic smiles, and politicians with plastic souls. They just don’t want to see someone engaged in good deeds. They want to hear good news. They want to know that God is real and that they are not alone in facing a silent universe. They want to know that their sins — sins that weigh heavy on their hearts, minds, and souls — they want to know that their sins are forgiven. They want to know that Jesus already took the punishment for those sins and that he rose from the dead to defeat the powers of sin and death.
This is the news for which so many people thirst. For better or worse, like it or not, you may be the only one who can bring them the Gospel. You may be the only one a seeker or a lost sinner will listen to, because they know you and trust you.
This is important — now more than ever. I often say that we live in a post-Christian culture. A couple of articles that have come across my online “feed” lately confirm that. Let me briefly share the findings of two of them with you.
Microsoft News recently published two pieces that were eye-opening: “Why People Aren’t Religious Anymore: 15 Simple Reasons” by Jane Andrews published last Tuesday, and “21 Reasons Why You Should Think Twice About Raising Your Children with Religion” by Serena Tactics published last month. The first piece states some of the reasons we’ve all heard, such as people have been “disappointed by religious institutions,” they’re more interested in “chasing material success,” and that social values are changing. There were some interesting observations, such as the claim that secular humanism is on the rise. This is the idea that people are basically good and will do the right thing. This reminds me of a couple of lines from a song by one of my favorite bands:
Folks are basically decent
Conventional wisdom will say
But we read about the exceptions
In the papers every day.[4]
So much for secular humanism!
The second article, why we should not raise our children in the faith, was disturbing. It claims that religion is problematic, and a hindrance to development. Why? Because, as the author claims, not raising children in a religion will (among other things):
- Foster a Global Mindset
- Help them Build a Moral Foundation without Fear
- Encourage a Sense of Wonder about the Universe
- Build a Sense of Community
- Promote Physical Health and Well-Being
- Encourage Artistic and Creative Expression
- Build a Sense of Empathy and Compassion
- Foster a Love for Humanity and Our Planet
And the list goes on…
These are audacious but erroneous claims. I did not know that religion hindered these things. My moral foundation is not based on fear. I look at the universe with awe and wonder, just as the Psalmist did:
When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
human beings that you care for them?
(Psalm 8:3-4)
Furthermore, the Church offers community like no other secular institution, it teaches us to be empathetic and compassionate, and it encourages us to be good stewards of creation. And in terms of artistic and creative expression? Some of the greatest artists, musicians, and writers looked at their work as an expression of their faith. The work of da Vinci isn’t artistic? How about the masses composed by Mozart and Bach? What about writers such as Dante, John Donne, and someone named T. S. Eliot?
This is the problem. Our culture is in a state of decline. Values have changed and religion is being rejected as fodder for superstitious rubes. Never has there been a more apropos time for us to declare what we believe, to share it with others.
You’ll find many an opportunity if you just remain alert. You may be the conduit that will change someone’s life. You may be the voice of hope to someone in utter despair. You may be the first person who proclaims the Gospel in such a way that it makes perfect sense to a seeker. Maybe we need to modify Saint Francis’ famous quote a bit: “Proclaim the Gospel with your deeds at all time — and don’t be afraid to use your words as well.” Amen.
[1] See Mark Dever, Discipling: How to Help Others Follow Jesus (Wheaton: Crossway, 2016).
[2] Greg Odgen, Discipleship Essentials: A Guide to Building Your Life in Christ, expanded ed. (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2007), 7.
[3] Dever, 28.
[4] “Second Nature” by Rush, lyrics by Neil Peart, from the album Hold Your Fire, released September 1987.